"We are now approaching London Heathrow." The pilot said over the intercom.
We were flying to England, but not for a holiday, as we were moving over. It was very exciting for us, and more so because we already had our jobs lined up and they were ready for us to start when we felt that the time was right.
"A new chapter in our life is about to begin." I looked at John.
"A new chapter indeed." John smiled.
We were excited but nervous. Ted, on the other hand, was too busy with his coloring books. Having been doing them since we'd taken off almost half a day earlier, he was nowhere near finished as it was a color-by-numbers book and he wasn't one to rush through things.
A couple of minutes later, we began our descent into London Heathrow. We were still about half an hour from the actual airport, but that was normal. I decided to look out of the window, watching in awe as we slowly descended into the clouds.
"Do we know who is going to pick us up?" John then asked.
"A woman called Lorraine." I replied. "Wears a biker jacket and has short red hair. Also has a Liverpool accent."
"I just cannot wait for us to get to our new home." John smiled. "It's going to be absolutely wonderful."
"It is." I smiled.
We kept our eyes on each other, forgetting that the plane was descending. Before we knew it, the plane was below the clouds. I was completely mesmerised, and knew that we had finally found a country which we would call home. Yes, there was a troublesome government, but all countries had that. When the plane finally touched the runway, we breathed a sigh of relief.
"How long before we get off this fuckin' thing?" Ted finally asked, after hours of nothing but silence.
"A few minutes." John replied.
"Thankyou for using British Airways, and we hope that you anjoy what London has to offer." The pilot then said. "Hope to see you again, and feel free to tell your friends about us."
Only thing is, our new house wasn't in London, but Liverpool. Our home was a luxury condo in the city center, which was convenient as our jobs were in a toy-making company HQ. We were on the exact same team, doing the exact same shifts. As for Ted, he was going to be the company's main mascot, and was going to have teddy bears made and named after him, but without the talking feature.
Getting off the plane, we headed straight into the terminal building. We didn't have many bags with us, as we had loads of stuff waiting at the condo. It was now a matter of walking through the building and getting our lone huge suitcase and dragging it through to arrivals. Once we entered the baggage reclaim hall, it was just a case of waiting.
"How long do we have to wait here?" Ted was confused.
"As long as it takes for them to get all the suitcases out of the hold and onto the belt." John replied.
"We didn't have to wait so long in Inverness that time." Ted was still confused.
"That's because Inverness is a regional airport. This place, on the other hand, is fuckin' big." John was not having any of it.
"I get it now." Ted was bemused. "Christ."
The siren then sounded and the belt started moving. Immediately, suitcases started to come through, but none of them were ours.
"I'll go and get it." I offered.
"Are you sure about that?" John looked at me.
"I am strong enough to lift a suitcase, so yeah, I'm sure." I smiled.
Having been married for 2 years, we were as loved-up as ever. I patiently waited for our suitcase to come round. It was black and white, and when it did, I walked over, and grabbed it by the handle, as it was a pull-along. I then heaved it off of the belt, and extended the handle, and after giving a signal, we started walking. With Ted on John's back, yes, we did get a few looks, but we didn't care. When we finally entered the arrivals hall, we were greeted by a sea of people, although none of them looked like Lorraine. Then, thanks to someone's ability to not keep things out of the way, John tripped over, and landed on the floor.
"Sorry about that." A young woman replied.
"What the fuck were you thinking?" Ted was not happy.
"I honestly don't know." The young woman admitted. "I mean, that's never happened to me before. It's like I'm losing my senses. Are you here on holiday?"
"We're not here on holiday, if you want to know, as we are here to live. Yes, I am a teddy bear, and yes, I am talking, and that was my owner that just fell onto the fuckin' floor." Ted looked at the young woman.
"I'm s..." The young woman started.
"No need to be sorry, as I'm still in one piece." John heaved himself up.
A woman then came up to us, fitting the exact description that I'd given when on the plane. I saw that she had a badge on, and that it said that her name was Lorraine.
"Was I late?" Lorraine was panting.
"Not at all, as we just got through baggage." John was sitting down.
The young woman was still sitting there. I noticed that they were exchanging looks, but they weren't looks of anger, as they were looks of pity. As it turned out, the young woman was here because of a family emergency, and was waiting for a phone call. Moments later, she stood up, and walked away.
"Didn't get that woman's name." John looked up.
"She's a friend of mine." Lorraine replied. "Her name is Tanya."
"That's a good name." I put my hand on John's shoulder.
"Also noticed that she looked a little worried." Ted had noticed.
"Her brother is critically ill in hospital." Lorraine sighed. "Doctors say that he might not live through the night, so she booked an emergency flight from Vienna."
I helped John stand up, as I was still worried that he might have injured himself and not known about it. Fortunately, he was okay, but I was still worried.
"So now we can head outside and get into the car." John was relieved.
"Actually, it's a converted vintage ambulance that I drive." Lorraine corrected. "Got loads of room in the back, and it's good for long drives, as the drive from here to your condo in Liverpool will take a couple of hours. Luckily for you, I'm your neighbour, and I have medical qualifications, so I can help if any medical situations arise."
Lorraine picked up Ted and put him on her back. She also took hold of the pull-along, meaning that the only things that John and I had to carry were our carry-on bags. We then headed out of the airport, and into the fresh air. We were sad for Tanya, but at the same time, we were happy, as we were starting anew. We then walked to the car-park, and that was when we saw the ambulance. It was definitely something from the 1970s, and it was interesting to see. Lorraine then opened one of the back doors, and we got in. She placed Ted alongside us, and climbed into the front.
"How long have you been driving this?" John was eager to know.
"About a month, as I only got it converted last month. Bloody expensive, as it cost me a few thousand quid. Am lucky, though, as it's like a home away from home. Drive everywhere in it, including to work." Lorraine replied.
"Where do you work?" John was curious.
"At my brother's cosmetic surgery clinic." Lorraine replied. "Not far from where you three will be working. Now tell me where you come from."
"Boston." John smiled.
"I was born and raised in Liverpool." Lorraine mentioned. "Could show you around the entire place before you start at your work placements, if you want."
"That would be lovely, as we do need to get to know our new hometown." I replied.
Before we knew it, we had finally reached our condo. It didn't seem like hours had passed, but they had. The building had a lower condo and an upper condo, and a garage underneath. It was in the right spot, and it had all the elements of luxury, and it made us smile. Lorraine then helped us get out of the ambulance, and, after parking it in the garage, showed us how to open the main door, which was only accessible if you knew the right numbers to key in. Luckily for us, John had his phone on him, and put the number in a memo. We then walked in, and that was when Lorraine gave us our keys.
"Is there anything that we have to pay for mortgage-wise on this place?" I wanted to know.
"No, as my father owns this building and pays for everything." Lorraine replied. "Biological father, that is, as he came back into my life when I was 21."
"How old are you now?" I was surprised.
"30. What about you guys?" Lorraine replied and asked.
"John is 38, and I am 33." I replied.
"And what about your bear?" Lorraine was eager to know.
"My name is Ted, woman, and I am 30 years old, as I was made when John was 8." Ted was bemused.
I couldn't help but giggle at how Ted was sounding. We then walked up the stairs to our condo, with Lorraine in front of us. When we got to the door, John turned the key the right way, and opened the door. When we entered, we got a surprise, as there were big rooms, with windows that were full size and everything that we needed and wanted.
"I have never seen a living space as big as this before." Ted was surprised.
"There's much more." Lorraine smiled.
"This has more than enough space for not just us but any potential children that we may have." John was looking around.
That got heads turned.
"Are you sure about that?" Ted looked at John.
"At some point, definitely, but we do need to start working first." John replied.
I smiled, as I did want children with John. Lorraine put Ted down on the floor, and let him take a look around. He bumped into things, which was understandable as it was all new for him. Made us all laugh, including himself. Lorraine lay our pull-along on the floor beside the sofa.
"I'm going to have to go to work, so if you need me, here's my mobile number." Lorraine handed us her phone number. "There is already loads of food in the kitchen, and my dad should be around later, so he can help."
"What time is it?" Ted rubbed his head.
"It's almost lunchtime." Lorraine replied.
"What time did we get in?" John was confused.
"We got in at 7am." I smiled.
"Have to go now." Lorraine butted in.
"Will see you and probably your dad later." John took off his jacket.
Lorraine then left the condo and walked down the stairs. I closed the door, and pulled John towards the sofa. Ted was too busy to notice what was going on, as John and I shared a intimate snog with me ruffling through his hair as we did so and me not telling him that I wanted nothing more than to see him heavily pregnant with my child.
"Found out where the kitchen i... what the fuck are you guys doing?" Ted had finally noticed.
"We were just kissing." I was blushing.
"Looked to me like you were one step away from having actual sex." Ted stood firm. "By the way, lunch is in the microwave, and there's a bottle of red on the counter."
"Let us finish here first, and then take us through to the kitchen." I ordered.
"Yes, mom." Ted joked.
That made John and I both laugh.
"What the cock are you laughing at?" Ted was not worldly happy.
"The way you replied to me was fucking hilarious." I was laughing.
"This is the last time I am going to let you guys laugh at me, as the next time it happens, I'm going to start watching you having sex." Ted then said.
John and I immediately got up and let Ted lead us to the kitchen. Lunch was rice and there was a bottle of Stowells on the counter. It was wonderful, and afterwards, John and I decided to catch up on sleep. We were rudely awoken hours later.
"OPEN THE FUCKIN' DOOR!" A male voice yelled.
John climbed out of bed, followed immediately by me. We were still in our clothes from the day before. We ran to the door, and opened it, revealing Lorraine's father, Donovan.
"I've been waiting here for a fuckin' hour, and only now you two decide to come to the fuckin' door." Donovan had no idea.
"We only got in this morning and were actually asleep so there was no chance in hell of us hearing the door." I replied.
"Of course there wasn't." Donovan calmed down.
